Corporal Noel Clairmont

Noel Marc Jean Clairmont (1911-1976) was one of the original volunteers who joined the Canadian Army 6 days after the outbreak of the Second World War. Enlisting in Montreal on 16 September 1939 with the Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment), he served in Canada, Newfoundland and the United Kingdom before transferring to the Fusiliers Mont-Royal in 1941 while stationed in England.

His transfer was prompted by an unusually candid request contained in his service file, in which he described prejudice against French Canadians within his original battalion and stated that he felt he was being treated unfairly. His commanding officer supported the request without reservation, describing him as a capable soldier with an excellent conduct record.

Clairmont was promoted to Corporal and became stores corporal for the battalion's mortar platoon.

On the evening of 18 August 1942, 584 members of the Fusiliers Mont-Royal embarked with the 5,000 member assault force in southern England for Operation Jubilee, the planned raid on the French coastal town of Dieppe. The operation ended in disaster. Dieppe was heavily defended, with the beaches overlooked by fortified cliffs and backed by a concrete seawall. Instead of firm sand, the shoreline consisted of deep loose flint shingle that severely hindered the supporting Churchill tanks. On 19 August 1942, with the initial assault already faltering and communications badly disrupted, the Fusiliers Mont-Royal, held in reserve, were ordered ashore on the central beaches opposite the casino, designated Red and White Beaches. Initially reported missing, Corporal Noel Clairmont was later confirmed to have been captured and became Prisoner of War No. 25338. Of the 584 members of the Fusiliers Mont-Royal who landed at Dieppe, 119 were killed, 344 were taken prisoner, and only 125 returned to England, four of whom later died of their wounds. Overall, the raid cost Canada 916 killed and 1,946 taken prisoner.

Clairmont spent almost three years in German captivity. After capture the Canadians were paraded through the town of Dieppe, photographed and filmed for propaganda purposes. They were then loaded in filty and cramped boxcars for a 5 day journey, with little food or water, to the massive Stalag VIII-B (later renamed Stalag 344) in Lamsdorf, Germany. While imprisoned he briefly studied German and Italian and endured recurring sinus and bronchial illnesses. In January 1944, he, and a large detachment of Canadian Dieppe survivors, was transferred north to Stalag II-D. At Stalag II-D, prisoners were subjected to harsh winters, poor rations, and rampant lice. Their diet, Clairmont wrote in a letter home, consisted of  "Daily, except Tuesdays and Fridays: 9 ounces of bread, one square of margarine, two ounces of German sausage twice a week, one ounce of "liverwurst" on Monday, one ounce of cottage cheese on Sundays, a bowl of turnip, cabbage or potatoes as may be provided, every noon a kind of soup. From time to time at portion of sauerkraut. I eat the bread and the margarine, but my stomach refuses the soup and the sausages. It is a good thing that we receive the parcels which the Red Cross sends us". Because they were non-commissioned officers (NCOs) and enlisted men, the Germans forced many of them into Arbeitskommandos (working parties). They performed hard manual labor on local farms, in forestry, and in factories surrounding the Pomerania region. In January and February 1945, as the Soviet Red Army launched its massive offensive toward the Oder River, the German military panicked. Wanting to keep the prisoners as hostages for negotiations, the Germans forced Stalag II-D inmates onto the infamous "Long March" (or Death March) westward into the heart of Germany. They marched hundreds of kilometers on foot in sub-zero winter temperatures, carrying whatever meager belongings they had, slept in freezing barns or open fields, suffered from severe malnutrition, and faced the constant threat of being shot if they fell behind. Tragically, they were also occasionally strafed by Allied fighter planes that mistook the columns of marching men for retreating German troops. Exhausted, emaciated, and abandoned by fleeing German guards, they were ultimately met and freed by advancing American and British troops in late April 1945. Handed over to the Canadian and British forces, the prisoners were flown to Brussels and then to England as part of Operation Exodus. In England they received medical evaluations, clean clothes, and proper meals before boarding ships to finally return home to Canada.

Returning to Canada in June 1945, Clairmont was discharged the following month after nearly six years of military service in Canada, Newfoundland, Britain, France and occupied Germany. Shortly after the war, in December 1945, he met and married Janet Ion, an English-born immigrant to Canada, and together they raised three children.

In 1949 he unsuccessfully appealed for the award of the France and Germany Star, believing that his service at Dieppe and his imprisonment in Germany should qualify him. The Department of National Defence replied that only operational service in France or Germany after 6 June 1944 met the regulations, and captivity did not satisfy the award's qualifying criteria.It wasn't until 50 years after Dieppe, on 28 April, 1998, that the Military instituted the Dieppe Clasp to the Canadian Volunteer Service Medal, recognising the Dieppe veterans.On November 5, 2001, 25 years after Noel died, his brother, Pierre Paul, applied for the Dieppe Clasp, finally giving Noel the military recognition he deserved.

Noel Marc Jean Clairmont died on 23 July 1976 at Queen Mary Veterans Hospital. His gravestone reads "Captured at Dieppe, France 19-08-1942". His wartime experience - from early volunteer to Dieppe veteran and long-term prisoner of war - reflects both the sacrifices endured by the Fusiliers Mont-Royal during Operation Jubilee and the resilience of the Canadians who survived years of captivity before returning home.